Tell Governor Green: Appoint an Independent Investigator for $35k Scandal!
Hawai'i Governor Josh Green
With Hawai'i Lieutenant Governor Sylvia Luke now implicated in the investigation into a sprawling corruption, bribery, and campaign finance scandal from 2022, the people of Hawai'i need an independent investigation (a Special Prosecutor) to ensure that real truth and accountability will come out. We need real answers: Who took the $35,000? In exchange for what? What happened to that money? How deep does this all go? Who else may have been involved or implicated?
The Executive Branch cannot investigate itself. The Attorney General is the lawyer and top prosector for the Executive Branch, including the Lieutenant Governor. Public trust in government has been severely impacted by years of this ongoing scandal. Restoring public trust requires an independent investigation that the public can trust. That's why we're calling on the Governor to act expeditiously to appoint an impartial Special Prosecutor to investigate newly reported improper campaign contributions and/or other payments and continue the investigation unearthed by the federal Department of Justice and FBI investigations resulting in the indictments and convictions of former lawmakers Ty Cullen and Kalani English in 2022.
Josh Green, do the right thing: appoint an independent special prosecutor!
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To:
Hawai'i Governor Josh Green
From:
[Your Name]
The undersigned call for the expeditious appointment of an impartial Special Prosecutor to investigate newly reported improper campaign contributions and/or other payments and continue the investigation unearthed by the federal Department of Justice and FBI investigations resulting in the indictments and convictions of former lawmakers Ty Cullen and Kalani English in 2022.
Under Hawai‘i Revised Statutes § 28-8.5, Attorney General Ann Lopez has the discretion to appoint a special assistant. It is imperative that you empower a special prosecutor through these means, with appropriate staff and resources, to ensure maximum impartiality in determining the facts and potential violations of State law.
The Executive Branch cannot investigate itself. Public trust in government has been severely impacted by recent revelations. Restoring public trust requires an appropriate arm’s length distance from the interested parties in the Executive Branch.
Furthermore, we hope you will join us in urging the Legislative Branch to pass the laws before it that would put an end to the culture that created this crisis of confidence in the first place: the status quo of private moneyed interests corrupting our political system. This is what is at the root of causing the culture of mistrust and confusion between the public and our elected officials. Only fixing the culture that allowed this to happen will close the trust gap and allow us all to move forward.
The time is now to:
1. Close the loophole allowing government contractors and their associates to contribute to political campaigns. (SB2530/HB2052)
2. Implement a public financing system that would provide a real alternative to the private money campaign system and reduce the pernicious influence of monied interests in the functioning of our government once and for all. (SB2313/HB2238)
3. Increase Penalties and Extend the Statute of Limitations for enforcement actions of potential campaign and ethics related crimes. (SB2447/HB1520 & SB2824/HB2124)